LORETTO, Penn.- FDU Cross Country concluded their season at the NEC Championships Saturday morning at B&D Acres Farm in Loretto, Penn. The FDU Men claimed a sixth place finish, and the women finished in ninth place. 

The Men's team opened the event with an 8k race, where the Knights were pacing among the top teams in the NEC, but ending the race in sixth place, just four points behind Wagner who finished fifth, and just seven points behind Le Moyne who took fourth at the end of a close race. 

Sophomore Chase Lopez was the first Knight to cross the finish line, as he ran a time of 26:22.20 to take home 11th place, and an All-NEC nod along with it. Behind Lopez was Kidus Zeleke who completed his 8k in 27:27.30, which was good for 30th place overall. Two other Knights would find themselves in the top 30 at the end of the race, as Luis Abreu took 35th, and Dylan Manning took 37th. 

Jalen Goode and Trevor Ehrlicher finished the race right near each other, as Goode finished in 49th place, and Ehrlicher in 51st. Sam Szczepanski finished in 53rd to conclude the scoring for the Knights.

"We came into the preseason ranked number eight, and were projected to finish ninth going into this meet. I'm proud of the effort of the men today to exceed expectations and finish sixth overall," Ella G. Stratis Head Coach of Track and Field and Cross Country Wesley Stephens said. "Sophomore Chase Lopez put all the pieces of the puzzle together on the right day to be the first Knight to earn all conference honors since 2015."

The Women's race concluded the meet with the FDU women finishing in ninth place. Temi Adebayo led the way for FDU once again, finishing her 6k in 25:47.40, to finish the race in 45th. Mary Daclan was the next Knight to cross the finish line, as she was the second Knight in running a time of 26:18.90.

The next three Knights all crossed the finish line next to each other, as Mackenna Calvin (66th), Aisha Williams (67th), and Courtney Adams (69th), rounded out the top five for FDU. 

"The women executed the race plan to perfection. Freshmen Temi Adebayo, Mary Daclan and MacKenna Calvin carried the women who were missing two scorers to place ninth overall. Excited about the growth of the young women's program over the season and can't wait to see what they do next season." Stephens said.

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